by ti-amie Team entries announced for 2025 US Open Mixed Doubles Championship
Tuesday, June 17, 2025



A blockbuster lineup of star-studded teams have officially entered into the reimagined US Open Mixed Doubles Championship for 2025. This unprecedented list of star entrants for Mixed Doubles—including nine of the world’s Top-10 women and nine of the world’s Top-10 men—makes mixed doubles at the 2025 US Open a must-attend Championship event. The competition will take place during US Open Fan Week on Tuesday, Aug. 19, and Wednesday, Aug. 20, at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, with $1 million in prize money being awarded to the winning team.

The entry list for the 2025 US Open Mixed Doubles Championship includes the following teams (listed by combined singles ranking):


In total, 16 teams have entered as of 5:00pm EST on June 16. The entry window will close on July 28 at 12:00 ET, at which time the top eight teams with the best combined singles ranking at the time will officially be in the field/draw via direct acceptance. The remaining eight teams will be determined via wild card and announced on a date to follow.

“In our initial discussions about reimagining and elevating the US Open Mixed Doubles Championship, we wanted to find a way to showcase the world’s best men and women competing with and against one another, and we were confident that we would be able to get the top players in the game excited about this unique opportunity,” said Lew Sherr, the USTA's CEO and executive director.

“Seeing the teams that have already put their names on the entry list makes us all incredibly excited. It shows that the players are behind what we are trying to do, and we know that the fans will love it.”

Earlier this year, the USTA announced the reimagining of the US Open Mixed Doubles Championship, with the goal of driving greater awareness for this storied competition, giving fans both in attendance and across the globe the opportunity to see tennis’ biggest stars - both men and women - compete side-by-side for a US Open Grand Slam title.

"The US Open has long strived to find innovative and new ways to make the game more accessible and entertaining for our fans,” said US Open Tournament Director Stacey Allaster.

“We believe that this reimagined US Open Mixed Doubles Championship will do exactly that, with the top men and women players in tennis competing side-by-side in a fast-paced, highly competitive format. Being able to move this event to a place on the schedule where it is able to take center stage was very important, and with our broadcast partners fully bought-in, more fans than ever before, both in the U.S. and around the globe, will be able to enjoy this incredible competition."

This year the event was moved from the third week of the tournament, its traditional place on the calendar, to the first week—US Open Fan Week—to enable top singles stars to compete together and to give this Grand Slam Championship center stage, including coverage by ESPN and international broadcast rights holders. Other enhancements for this year’s event will be:

A player field featuring 16 teams—eight teams earning direct entry based on their combined singles ranking and eight wild-card entries.

$1 million in prize money for the US Open Mixed Doubles Champions (team)
Best-of-three-set matches with short sets to four games, no-ad scoring, tiebreakers at four-all and a 10-point match tiebreak in lieu of a third set.

The final will be a best-of-three set match to six games, featuring no-ad scoring, with tiebreakers at six-all and a 10-point match tiebreaker in lieu of a third set.

All matches played in Arthur Ashe Stadium or Louis Armstrong Stadium.

The event will be featured across ESPN properties:
Tuesday: 11am - 1pm ET on ESPN2; 1pm - 2pm ET on ESPNews
Wednesday: 7pm - 10pm ET on ESPN2

Tickets for the US Open Mixed Doubles Championship are available via Ticketmaster and USOpen.org. Click here to learn more about the event—spectacular awaits!

https://www.usopen.org/en_US/news/artic ... nship.html

by ti-amie Technically this tournament is not part of the US Open proper but I wasn't sure if it should be given it's own board.

by ti-amie

He was at press conferences and have covered Alcaraz a lot.

Both stars know about the fanfictions about them. It is a good pr and promotion for both. Look at the hype. It also can lead to more endorsement and income. Win win situation for them. As this pairing has more hype than all others combined lol

by ti-amie

by ponchi101 Who should have been celebrated a long time ago.
Never saw her play, of course. But the record is that she was a truly outstanding player. And a personal story worth telling.

by ti-amie

by news727 Not sure if this is the right thread but I'd like to contribute the broadcast schedule for the tournament in the U.S. Arrows indicate channel changes.

All courts streaming live | ESPN DTC
August 18-21: Qualifying | 11am ESPN2 => 1-5pm ESPNEWS
August 20: Mixed doubles final | 7-10pm ESPN2
August 24: First round | 11am ESPN2 => Noon ABC => 3pm ESPN2
August 25-26: First round | 11:30am ESPN, 7pm ESPN2 (primetime respectively at AA and LA)
August 27: Second round | 11:30am ESPN
August 28: Second round | 11:30am ESPN => 5pm ESPN2
August 29: Third round | 11:30am ESPN => 6pm ESPN2
August 30: Third round | 11am ESPN2
August 31: Round of 16 | 11am ESPN => 3pm ABC => 6pm ESPN2
September 1: Round of 16 | 11am ESPN => 7pm ESPN2
September 2-3: Quarterfinals | 11:30am ESPN
September 4: Women's semifinals | 7pm ESPN
September 5: Noon ESPN2 (women's doubles final) => 3pm ESPN (men's semifinals)
September 6: Women's final | 4-7pm ESPN
September 7: Men's final | 2-5:30pm ABC (preshow begins 1pm)

by patrick Why no preshow for WTA final? College football?

by news727

patrick wrote: ↑Fri Aug 08, 2025 10:28 pm Why no preshow for WTA final? College football?

Yes.

ABC is fully booked for the day:

Noon - Illinois/Duke or Texas/San Jose St
3:30pm - Kentucky/Ole Miss
7pm - College Football Scoreboard
7:30pm - SNF: Oklahoma/Michigan

ESPN's live event schedule for that afternoon:

Noon - Illinois/Duke or Texas/San Jose St (whichever game ABC doesn't select)
3pm - College Football Scoreboard
4pm - WTA final
7pm - Kansas State/Army

So a few scenarios emerge:
1) Game runs short (less than 3.5 hours). ESPN could do a 15/20 min studio show (depending on how much content exists), then transition to the WTA pregame.
2) Game runs minutes above 3.5 hours. If they still want to do a WTA pregame, the ending for the CFB may have to be rushed.
3) Game runs tens of minutes above but still before 4pm. No WTA pregame, instead the studio show will be backtimed to 4pm.
4) Game runs until 4pm or later. A flash yellow warning may appear on screen that WTA coverage will start on ESPNEWS/ESPN DTC.
5) Same as 4 but the game is a blowout. A flash yellow warning may appear on screen that CFB will conclude on ESPNEWS/ESPN DTC.

by ponchi101

news727 wrote: ↑Thu Aug 07, 2025 11:14 pm Not sure if this is the right thread but I'd like to contribute the broadcast schedule for the tournament in the U.S. Arrows indicate channel changes.

All courts streaming live | ESPN DTC
August 18-21: Qualifying | 11am ESPN2 => 1-5pm ESPNEWS
August 20: Mixed doubles final | 7-10pm ESPN2
August 24: First round | 11am ESPN2 => Noon ABC => 3pm ESPN2
August 25-26: First round | 11:30am ESPN, 7pm ESPN2 (primetime respectively at AA and LA)
August 27: Second round | 11:30am ESPN
August 28: Second round | 11:30am ESPN => 5pm ESPN2
August 29: Third round | 11:30am ESPN => 6pm ESPN2
August 30: Third round | 11am ESPN2
August 31: Round of 16 | 11am ESPN => 3pm ABC => 6pm ESPN2
September 1: Round of 16 | 11am ESPN => 7pm ESPN2
September 2-3: Quarterfinals | 11:30am ESPN
September 4: Women's semifinals | 7pm ESPN
September 5: Noon ESPN2 (women's doubles final) => 3pm ESPN (men's semifinals)
September 6: Women's final | 4-7pm ESPN
September 7: Men's final | 2-5:30pm ABC (preshow begins 1pm)

I see that you found the tennis on TV topic. So thanks for both your posts.
And welcome to the forum

by ti-amie Darwin Blanch, Alyssa Ahn earn 2025 US Open wild cards with national junior titles
Monday, August 11, 2025



Top American juniors Darwin Blanch and Alyssa Ahn won the USTA Boys’ and Girls’ 18s National Championships on Sunday, each earning a main-draw wild card into the US Open.

The 17-year-old Blanch, who was the tournament’s top seed, did not drop a set en route to the final, where he defeated No. 8 seed Jack Satterfield (18; Tampa, Fla.), 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, Sunday in Kalamazoo, Mich. The Boca Raton, Fla., native has predominantly been playing on the ITF World Tennis Tour recently, winning his first professional singles title at a M15 event in Spain in February.

Blanch also became only the second player this century to win both the boys’ 16s and 18s titles in Kalamazoo, having won the 16-and-under title in 2022 at the age of 14.


Photo by USTA Boys' National Championships

hn, meanwhile, also completed the 16s and 18s sweep of the USTA Billie Jean King Girls’ National Championships in her native San Diego, having also won the 16-and-under title in 2022. This year, the 18-year-old and No. 7 seed handily defeated No. 17 seed Maya Iyengar (18; Paradise Valley, Ariz.), 6-1, 6-2, in Sunday’s singles final. Ahn is committed to play college tennis next season at Stanford.

The top seeds in the boys’ doubles field also raised the trophy this weekend as Max Exsted (18; Savage, Minn.) and Cooper Woestendick (18; Olathe, Kan.) won the boys’ 18s doubles title in Kalamazoo. Meanwhile, the No. 2-seeded pair of Thea Frodin (16; Woodland Hills, Calif.) and Kristina Penickova (15; Campbell, Calif.) prevailed in San Diego, bringing home the girls’ 18s doubles title. Both pairs will be rewarded with a US Open main-draw doubles wild card.

Singles finalists Satterfield and Iyengar will both receive a US Open Qualifying wild card.

https://www.usopen.org/en_US/news/artic ... itles.html

by ti-amie Former women's champion Venus Williams headlines 2025 US Open wild cards
Wednesday, August 13, 2025

Venus Williams, one of the sport's most legendary players, is making her return to the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center as a wild card for the 2025 US Open.

Fellow Americans Clervie Ngounoue, Julieta Pareja, Caty McNally, Valerie Glozman and Alyssa Ahn will also receive singles main draw wild cards, as well as France’s Caroline Garcia, a 2022 semifinalist, and Australian Talia Gibson.

Williams, 45, is a seven-time Grand Slam singles champion, including twice at the US Open (2000, 2001). Williams returned to action last month at the Mubadala Citi DC Open in Washington, D.C., playing her first match in 16 months and earning her first singles victory in nearly two years. With the victory, Williams became the oldest player to win a WTA Tour-level singles match in more than 21 years. She is also playing in the reimagined mixed doubles championship, teaming up with compatriot Reilly Opelka.

Along with her sister, Williams helped to inspire the next generation of Black tennis players, including Ngounoue. During a press conference in Washington, D.C., Williams said it was far from what she expected when she first picked up a racquet, but she's thrilled to have made an impact.

"As a young person, I wanted to play the game, be a champion. I loved the game so much, I didn't realize that it would be so much bigger than myself," she said. "Seeing these young women doing positive things with their life, winning tournaments, inspiring the next generation, too, it's like I could have never imagined that. So it's like icing on the cake, cherries on top with the nuts and all the fixings. It's beautiful."

Ngounoue, 19, reached a career-best ranking of world No. 191 last month after winning her second singles title of the season at an ITF World Tennis Tour W50 event in Spain. The former world No. 1 junior will be returning to the US Open for the first time since 2023, when she received a wild card after winning the singles title at the USTA Billie Jean King Girls’ 18s National Championship, her only previous Grand Slam main draw appearance.

Pareja, 16, is currently ranked as the No. 1 junior in the world. She reached the girls’ singles and doubles final at Wimbledon earlier this summer and achieved a career-best professional ranking of world No. 317 earlier this year following a run to the semifinals of the WTA 250 event in Bogota, Colombia as a qualifier.

McNally, 23, earned her wild card by winning the US Open Wild Card Challenge, buoyed by her singles title at the USTA Pro Circuit W100 event in Evansville, Ind., last month. The title was McNally’s second of the month of July, after taking home the crown at the WTA 125 event in Newport, R.I. She now finds herself on the cusp of breaking back into the WTA Top 100, with a current ranking of world No. 104.

Glozman, 18, earned her wild card by winning the women’s singles title at the inaugural American Collegiate Wild Card Playoffs in June. The reigning ACC Freshman of the Year at Stanford, Glozman bested a field of the top American collegiate players at the new event designed to increase the number of US Open wild cards allotted to the top college tennis players. Glozman is no stranger to New York, having competed in US Open qualifying each of the past three years.

Ahn, 18, won the singles title at the USTA Billie Jean King Girls’ 18s National Championships. The San Diego native is committed to play college tennis at Stanford this year, where she will be a teammate of fellow wild card recipient Glozman.

Garcia, 31, will play in her final Grand Slam at the tournament at which she achieved her best Grand Slam singles result—a semifinal appearance in 2022—as she announced she will retire from tennis at the end of the 2025 season. The former world No. 4 has won 11 WTA Tour titles including the WTA Finals in 2022. She earned her wild card based on a reciprocal agreement between the USTA and FFT where wild cards between the US Open and Roland Garros are exchanged.

Gibson, 21, is currently ranked a career-best No. 107 and has won two professional singles titles this year. She earned her wild card based on a reciprocal agreement between the USTA and Tennis Australia where wild cards between the US Open and Australian Open are exchanged.

Nine American women are receiving wild cards into the US Open Qualifying tournament, held August 18-21 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center:

Fiona Crawley, 23, the former all-American at North Carolina who has won two professional singles titles this year; Hina Inoue, 22, who has won one professional singles title this year; Ayana Akli, 24, who won her first professional singles title in May and is currently ranked a career-best world No. 285; Monika Ekstrand, 18, who reached the final of the W100 event in Cary, N.C., last month as a qualifier and has won two professional singles titles this year; Kristina Penickova, 15, the current No. 5 junior in the world who has won two Grand Slam girls’ doubles titles this year; Akasha Urhobo, 18, who reached the singles final at the W35 event in Boca Raton, Fla., this spring; Alexis Nguyen, 17, a rising high school senior who is committed to play college tennis at North Carolina; Mary Stoiana, 22, an all-American at Texas A&M who was the runner-up at the American Collegiate Wild Card Playoffs; and Maya Iyengar, 18, the USTA Girls’ 18s national singles runner-up.

https://www.usopen.org/en_US/news/artic ... cards.html

by ti-amie Holt, Nava among American men awarded 2025 US Open wild cards
Wednesday, August 13, 2025

Americans Brandon Holt, Nishesh Basavareddy, Tristan Boyer, Emilio Nava, Stefan Dostanic and Darwin Blanch will receive singles main draw wild cards into the 2025 US Open, as well as France’s Valentin Royer and Australian Tristan Schoolkate.

Holt, 27, broke into the ATP Top 100 and reached a career-best ranking of world No. 99 earlier this summer after reaching the second round of the ATP 250 event in Mallorca as a qualifier. Currently ranked No. 106, he has won two ATP Challenger Tour titles this year.

Basavareddy, 20, is currently ranked No. 109. He, too, reached a career-best ranking of world No. 99 earlier this summer. A former all-American at Stanford, Basavareddy notably reached the semifinals of the ATP 250 event in Auckland in January. He’ll be making his US Open main draw debut.

Boyer, 24, is currently ranked No. 116. He reached the second round of the Australian Open this year as a qualifier, earning his first tour-level win. He also owns wins at two ATP Masters 1000 events this year—Indian Wells and Toronto—and will be making his US Open main draw debut.

Nava, 23, is currently ranked a career-best world No. 105 and earned his wild card by winning the US Open Wild Card Challenge. Click here to view the final US Open Wild Card Challenge Standings. Nava’s summer was highlighted by a run to the third round of the ATP Masters 1000 event in Toronto as a qualifier. Nava also won three consecutive ATP Challenger Tour titles this spring, which earned him a spot in the French Open via the Roland Garros Wild Card Challenge, where he reached the second round.

Dostanic, 23, earned his wild card by winning the men’s singles title at the inaugural American Collegiate Wild Card Playoffs in June. Dostanic, who helped lead Wake Forest to the NCAA men’s tennis national championship this spring, bested a field of the top American collegiate players at the new event designed to increase the number of US Open wild cards allotted to the top college tennis players.

Blanch, 17, will make his Grand Slam debut after winning the singles title at the USTA Boys’ 18s National Championships. A former top-ranked junior, Blanch has predominantly been playing on the ITF World Tennis Tour recently, winning his first professional singles title at a M15 event in Spain in February.

Royer, 24, is currently ranked a career-best No. 104. He reached the second round at Wimbledon as a qualifier and has won two ATP Challenger Tour titles this season. He earned his wild card based on a reciprocal agreement between the USTA and FFT where wild cards between the US Open and Roland Garros are exchanged.

Schoolkate, 24, is currently ranked a career-best No. 97 and has won two ATP Challenger Tour titles this year. He earned his wild card based on a reciprocal agreement between the USTA and Tennis Australia where wild cards between the US Open and Australian Open are exchanged.

Additionally, nine American men are receiving wild cards into the US Open Qualifying tournament, held August 18-21 at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center:

Andres Martin, 24, who is currently ranked a career-best No. 275 after reaching the final at the ATP Challenger Tour event in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., last month; Tyler Zink, 24, the former US Open boys’ doubles champion who has won one professional singles title this year; Patrick Maloney, 25, who has won two professional singles titles this year; Garrett Johns, 24, who has won three professional singles titles this year; Martin Damm, 21, who reached the men’s doubles second round at the 2019 US Open at the age of 15; Jack Kennedy, 17, the Long Island native who has been ranked as high as No. 5 in the ITF junior rankings this year; Benjamin Willwerth, 18, who reached the boys’ singles final at the Australian Open this year; Michael Zheng, 21, the reigning NCAA men’s singles champion and the runner-up at the American Collegiate Wild Card Playoffs; and Jack Satterfield, 18, the USTA Boys’ 18s national singles runner-up.

https://www.usopen.org/en_US/news/artic ... cards.html

by ti-amie

by ti-amie

by ponchi101 I am sure that Sinner is at the moment about to have a mental breakdown for being left out of this event. He must be moving heaven and earth to find a partner.

by ti-amie

ponchi101 wrote: ↑Sat Aug 16, 2025 5:11 pm I am sure that Sinner is at the moment about to have a mental breakdown for being left out of this event. He must be moving heaven and earth to find a partner.

Did you forget the /s ?

by news727 Sunday Preliminary Order of Play

Arthur Ashe Stadium
Starts at Noon

USA B. Shelton (6) vs Q/LL
Followed by
RUS A. Sabalenka (1) vs SUI R. Masarova
Not before 7PM
SRB N. Djokovic (7) vs USA L. Tien
Followed by
USA J. Pegula (4) vs EGY M. Sherif

Louis Armstrong Stadium
Starts at 11AM

GBR E. Raducanu vs Qualifier
Not before 1PM
USA E. Nava vs USA T. Fritz (4)
Not before 7PM
Qualifier vs ITA J. Paolini (7)
Followed by
RUS D. Medvedev (13) vs FRA B. Bonzi

by ashkor87 so, the usual questions:

1. who win win this title?
2. who will crash to ignonimous defeat?
3. which young unknown will soar to great heights?
4. which will be the best first round match?

My answers:
1. Sinner and Swiatek
2. Tsitsipas and Ostapenko
3. Tien and Danilovic
4. Bublik versus Cilic and Mboko versus Krejcikova

by ti-amie

ashkor87 wrote: ↑Fri Aug 22, 2025 6:52 am so, the usual questions:

1. who win win this title?
2. who will crash to ignonimous defeat?
3. which young unknown will soar to great heights?
4. which will be the best first round match?

My answers:
1. Sinner and Dwiatek
2. Tsitsipas and Ostapenko
3. Tien and Danilovic
4. Bublik versus Cilic and Mboko versus Krejcikova

You think Tien will get past Djokovic first round? WOW

by ashkor87

ti-amie wrote: ↑Fri Aug 22, 2025 9:28 am You think Tien will get past Djokovic first round? WOW

yes..

by ti-amie

ashkor87 wrote: ↑Fri Aug 22, 2025 11:27 am

ti-amie wrote: ↑Fri Aug 22, 2025 9:28 am You think Tien will get past Djokovic first round? WOW

yes..

by ti-amie

by ti-amie

by ti-amie I don't understand the USTA.

Usually the MD Singles are updated once Qualifying is over. That is when the Qualifiers are placed. After that the Day 1 and Day 2 OoP's are released in full.

The USTA in its infinite wisdom is nickel and diming the release of the daily OoP this year and haven't even updated the draws with Qualy placement.

I hope that there won't be any major changes.

Make it make sense.

by ponchi101

ashkor87 wrote: ↑Fri Aug 22, 2025 6:52 am so, the usual questions:

1. who win win this title?
2. who will crash to ignonimous defeat?
3. which young unknown will soar to great heights?
4. which will be the best first round match?

...

1. Alcaraz and Swiatek
2. Tsitsipas, Medvedev, Paul, Ostapenko, Navarro
3. Nobody and her cousin.
4. Opelka will take one set from Carlitos but, because of the sheer power, will force Carlitos to hit some great passing shots.

by ti-amie

by shmrck14 For the young unknowns look out for Teresa Valentova.

by Suliso Yes, albeit not unknown anymore.

by ashkor87 the court seems a tad slower than last year.. certainly slower than Cincy.. I would say medium to medium fast.. will suit Sabalenka, Rybakina Alcaraz..

by ashkor87

ti-amie wrote: ↑Fri Aug 22, 2025 9:28 am Tsitsipas and Ostapenko

Got it half right.. the other shoe will drop soon.

by JTContinental In new BS excuses, today Ostapenko is claiming that she didn't understand what the word "education" meant.

by shmrck14 It reads more as a true apology, but it's very likely she didn't write it.

by jazzyg I actually think that is exactly what she meant. She was talking about what she thought was Townsend's lack of education in tennis etiquette by startig warm-ups at the net.

That does not excuse her deplorable behavior, but it checks out with her rant off the court in her interview with reporters.

by ponchi101 Garbiñe said almost those same exact words to Krejcikova years ago at RG, after a defeat. But Garbiñe had a reputation as a "lady", while Alona has a different one.

by ti-amie Ben Rothenberg
‪@benrothenberg.bsky.social‬
US Open media were sent instructions for how to deal with the enhanced security on site for Trump's expected first visit to the #USOpen in ten years...

by ti-amie

What did they expect him to say?

by ponchi101 And if this guy has not political opinions at all, what can you tell him? It does not affect him.
I am sure Tiny will try to make it down to hand over the trophy.

by ashkor87 Saw the women's doubles finals - all 4great players but I thought Siniakova made crucial errors, at the wrong time..

by ti-amie

They clarified that he's won a career Golden Slam not a calendar Golden Slam.

by ti-amie Colette Lewis
‪@zootennis.bsky.social‬
Bulgaria's Ivan Ivanov wins back-to-back junior singles titles, beating compatriot Alexander Vasilev 7-5, 6-3. Ivanov has now matched Grigor Dimitrov's run to both Wimbledon and US Open boys singles titles in 2008
#USOpen2025

by ti-amie Colette Lewis
‪@zootennis.bsky.social‬
Jeline Vandromme of Belgium is 2025 US Open girls singles champion. She defeats qualifier Lea Nilsson of Sweden 7-6(2), 6-2
#USOpen2025

by ti-amie Colette Lewis
‪@zootennis.bsky.social‬
Jack Kennedy and Keaton Hance win the #USOpen2025 all-USA boys doubles final, beating Benjamin Willwerth and Noah Johnston 6-3, 1-6, 10-8

by ti-amie Colette Lewis
‪@zootennis.bsky.social‬
Sisters Jana and Alena Kovackov(CZE) win the girls doubles title, beating Jeline Vandromme(BEL) and Laima Vladson(LTU) 6-2, 6-2.

The final concluded barely 15 minutes before the rain arrived.

#USOpen2025

by ti-amie Why Donald Trump is Returning to the U.S. Open
A decade after he was booed out of the U.S. Open, Bounces can report who invited Trump back courtside for Sunday's men's final.
Ben Rothenberg
Sep 06, 2025

NEW YORK — With both men winning on Friday, the third consecutive major final between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz is now booked for the U.S. Open.

The tournament is already trembling not just with anticipation for Sunday’s match itself, but because of the vibrations caused by the approaching elephant-in-the-room for the occasion: U.S. President Donald Trump, who will be making his first appearance to the tournament in more than a decade.

Trump, 79, had been a fixture at the tournament for decades like many other New York socialites. But after years of consistent visits to Arthur Ashe Stadium, he has not gone to the U.S. Open since attending a 2015 quarterfinal match between Venus and Serena Williams. That was his first appearance since he’d entered the 2016 presidential race on an anti-immigrant platform, and he was resoundingly booed by the crowd in Arthur Ashe Stadium.

I first heard whispers about Trump’s planned return visit to the 2025 U.S. Open on Wednesday of this week; journalist Marisa Kabas confirmed those whispers on Thursday.

What I can add here at Bounces is new, breaking reporting about who is bringing Trump back to the U.S. Open after all these years.

After corroborating with several sources, Bounces can report that Trump will be attending the U.S. Open men’s final not at the behest of the tournament itself, but as an invited guest of Rolex, the luxury Swiss watchmaker which has a large suite inside Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Rolex has been an increasingly ubiquitous sponsor of major tennis tournaments, and has also sponsored a number of top tennis stars—including Sinner, Alcaraz, Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek—who appear in Rolex commercials which air frequently during U.S. Open television coverage.

Rolex’s motive in bringing Trump to the U.S. Open? I have not yet heard back from Rolex—and will update this story if and when I do hear back from them—but I do have an initial theory of the case: I would not be surprised if Rolex has made this unusual gesture because they have a vested interest in getting Trump’s ear to lobby the famously persuadable president about lowering the exceptionally high 39 percent tariff on Switzerland, where Rolex is based.

While Rolex’s intentions are not yet fully known, Rolex’s invitation to Trump is certain to cause considerable headaches for attendees of Sunday’s final. On Friday evening, the U.S. Open emailed credentialed media about “enhanced security measures” to expect on Sunday; many of these additional screenings will presumably affect all 22,000+ attendees on Sunday.

Both men’s finalists were asked about Trump’s attendance after their semifinal wins. Neither commented on Trump or his particular politics, but rather talked about the status symbol of having a U.S. President at a tennis match.

“It is a privilege for the tournaments having the president from every country just to support the tournament, to support tennis, and to support the match,” Alcaraz said. “For me, playing in front of him... so, to be honest, I will try not to be focused [on Trump], and I will try not to think about it. I don't want myself to be nervous because of it. But I think, you know, [his] attending the tennis match, it's great for tennis to have the president into the final.”

Sinner was only asked about Trump’s attendance by Italian media, and responded something similar about a president’s attendance reflecting well on the importance of tennis. (I will add a fuller translation of the quote when it becomes available.)

Donald Trump’s History at the U.S. Open

Trump, a New York socialite for decades before his turn toward presidential politics, would have almost certainly continued attending the Open regularly were it not for how vocally he was booed during that 2015 quarterfinal. While other celebrities at the match—including Oprah Winfrey, Kendrick Lamar, Alan Cumming and Aziz Ansari—received raucous applause, Trump was booed at deafening levels.1 I still remember sitting in the lower bowl and seeing a man who was jogging up the aisle during a changeover stop in his tracks so he could stand and join the booing as Trump was shown on screen.

Before the fans in New York made clear Trump that was no longer welcome among them, he had been a favorite for flashbulbs at the event: Getty Images has photos of Trump at the U.S. Open in 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, and 2014; the number of photos of him had declined in those last few years as his media profile diminished before his presidential run.

He was hardly an unwelcome guest in tennis circles in those days; tennis governing bodies were often eager to glom onto Trump’s penchant for attention for their own promotion, particularly the WTA.

In 1989, Trump was invited to the WTA’s year-end awards banquet, where he presented Steffi Graf with her Player of the Year trophy.

Here’s a passage about Trump and Monica Seles from some of my earlier reporting on Trump’s history in tennis:

When Monica Seles dropped out of Wimbledon in 1991 without explanation after having won the Australian Open and French Open to start the year, rumors swirled that the 17-year-old was hiding out at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida. “He just thinks Monica’s a nice girl, and he admires her tennis skills,” a source was quoted as telling The New York Post, which afforded rapt coverage to anything to do with Trump and women. When Seles returned to the tour and won the US Open two months later, she singled out Trump for gratitude in helping her to her third Grand Slam title of the year. “[Trump] was, really, the one person that kind of always said the whole two weeks that I can do it,” Seles told The Philadelphia Inquirer.

The Seles-Trump union proved unpopular; nearly all news reports on Seles winning the 1991 US Open included criticism of her affinity for Trump. Said The Los Angeles Times: “About the only thing Seles did wrong was to thank Donald Trump in her speech during the awards ceremony. She was booed loudly.”

Off court, Seles succeeded Trump’s then fiancée Marla Maples as a spokesmodel for No Excuses jeans, a brand that developed a strategy of spotlight-seeking by weaponizing scandalized women, from Donna Rice (amid Gary Hart infamy) to Paula Jones (amid Bill Clinton infamy). Seles, who was a considerably less tawdry figure, nonetheless starred in a bizarre commercial for the brand that ended with her teasingly saying, “I’m not going to Disney World,” before giggling and speeding away in a limousine with the New York license plate TRUMP.

In 1999, Trump signed on as the manager of a highly-hyped 14-year-old player Monique Viele, a saga I told in depth in the eBook Making Monique.

In 2012, even after Trump had already begun his xenophobic “birther” claims about Barack Obama, the WTA enlisted Trump to record a video for its “Strong is Beautiful” ad campaign.

Last year during his hush money trial, Trump listed Serena Williams as one of his frequent contacts. When asked about being included on that list during an interview with The New York Times’ “The Interview” podcast, Serena responded with considerable umbrage—not toward Trump, but toward the interviewer.

“I mean, is this what this interview is about? Really?” replied Serena, who was there to promote her In the Arena docuseries. “I talk to a lot of presidents, so…”

Few active tennis players have expressed strong opinions about Trump, but Coco Gauff did make reference to his 2024 election when she answered a question after winning the French Open in June about what it had felt like to hear the Star-Spangled Banner during the trophy ceremony:

It means a lot. Obviously there's a lot going on in our country right now with things, like—everything, yeah. (Smiling.) Yeah, I'm sure you guys know.

But just to be able to be a representation of that and a representation of, I guess, people that look like me in America who maybe don't feel as supported during this time period, just being that reflection of hope and light for those people.

I remember after the election and everything, it kind of felt down period a little bit and things like that. My mom told me during Riyadh [the WTA Finals last November]: ‘Just try to win the tournament just to give something for people to smile for.’ So that's what I was thinking about today when holding that [trophy].

And then seeing the flags in the crowd means a lot. You know, some people may feel some type of way about being patriotic and things like that, but I'm definitely patriotic and proud to be American. And I'm proud to represent the Americans that look like me and people who kind of support the things that I support.

https://www.benrothenberg.com/p/donald- ... olex-suite

by ti-amie U.S. Open Orders Broadcasters to Censor Reactions to Trump
An email obtained by Bounces includes instructions from the U.S. Open on supporting Trump's planned stagecraft during the National Anthem.
Ben Rothenberg
Sep 06, 2025

NEW YORK — Following up on the earlier news first reported by Bounces about Rolex’s invitation, I have further new information to report about the planning around presenting President Donald Trump’s appearance at the U.S. Open.

An internal email sent by the U.S. Tennis Association leadership to U.S. Open broadcasters, obtained by Bounces, requested that broadcasters censor any possible protests or other reactions to President Donald Trump’s presence at Sunday’s U.S. Open men’s final between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.

Here’s the key text from the USTA email obtained by Bounces:

“With respect to Broadcast Coverage, the President will be shown on the World Feed and the Ashe Court Feed during the opening anthem ceremony. We ask all broadcasters to refrain from showcasing any disruptions or reactions in response to the President’s attendance in any capacity, including ENG [Electronic News Gathering] coverage.”

The USTA’s plan to show Trump during the anthem, one of the noisiest and bombastic portions of Sunday’s events, is already an effective way to insulate Trump from likely booing. But the preemptive instructions outlined by the USTA in this email—asking broadcasters to censor and avoid any possible protest or negative crowd reaction to Trump for television audiences watching around the world—is further complicity in broadcasting Trump’s desired stagecraft for his first appearance at the U.S. Open in a decade.

The email also attached the USTA’s US Open social media policy, as well as “talking points and additional facts regarding the President’s visit.” The only attached “talking point,” however, was just a statement that “President Trump is planning to watch the US Open Men’s Singles Final from a suite as a sponsor guest.”

As previously first reported on Bounces, that unnamed sponsor is Rolex, the Swiss watchmaker which may be looking to curry favor with Trump during his visit to their luxury suite in hopes of lowering the high tariffs he has imposed on imports from Switzerland.

(Rolex PR has still not replied to Bounces’ inquiry about its motivations for inviting Trump to its U.S. Open suite.)

“We appreciate your understanding and cooperation,” the USTA email to broadcast personnel concludes, adding that any further questions can be brought either to the USTA Television’s managing director Patti Fallick or director of broadcasting Dayna Navatta.

If the crowd reacts anything like they did when Trump last appeared at the U.S. Open 10 years ago, he will be boisterously booed.

Though Trump being shown on the large video screens around Ashe would make for the most obvious occasion for booing or other dissent to erupt, U.S. Open attendees are also capable of chanting or booing in protest of Trump at other times of the match, which may be unavoidable for broadcasters to successfully censor if they cause any significant disruption to the match.

https://www.benrothenberg.com/p/us-open ... os-alcaraz

by ti-amie

by ti-amie

It goes the same way as the French Open final this year. Granollers and Zeballos saved 3 match points in the third set. It's their second major title of the year and of their careers

by ashkor87 there will be significant disruptions, I expect - but not much the tournament could have done about it - they are not the ones who invited him.

by dave g It will be interesting to see if Rolex gets booed.

by ponchi101 It will be interesting to see if Rolex's sales will be affected.
I gather I am switching to Omega.
(Wait. I don't have the money... )

by ti-amie 2025 US Open
Date August 24[a] – September 7
Edition 145th
Category Grand Slam (ITF)
Draw 128S/64D
Prize money $90,000,000
Surface Hard
Location New York City, United States
Venue USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center

by ti-amie

by ti-amie

by JTContinental Both ABC and ESPN mentioned the booing, so I guess repressive gag orders are still met with a resounding FU here, mock dictatorship or not.